If you're not using a highlighter, you might as well put your skin in a nursing home. The easiest way to create a youthful, dewy complexion, these must-have highlighters help turn back the clock

Not to be a Debbie downer, but it's a fact of life that with each passing year, time takes its toll on our complexions. Our cheekbones become more sunken in, our under-eye bags get darker and lower, and our skin turns sallower.

With that said, is it a lost cause to yearn for that perfectly chiseled face and youthful glow from our teenage years? Nope. Here at Total Beauty, our motto is if you don't have it, you can fake it -- with some help from the best highlighter, of course.

A great highlighter can perk up your complexion, accentuate the features you love, and even camouflage aging skin. Celebrity makeup artist Joanna Schlip calls highlighters "the secret weapon for a youthful, healthy glow -- especially for women ages 40 and over." Highlighter can help minimize dark circles, decrease the look of wrinkles, and mimic a facelift with appropriate placement. The key is knowing how to use it.

"Apply the highlighter under the eyes, above the brows and on the browbone to add life and brightness, which ultimately helps you to look healthier and younger," says celebrity makeup artist Geoffrey Rodriguez.

Schlip also recommends applying highlighter on the apple of your cheeks over your blush where the color is most vibrant. And makeup artist Karen Scott recommends using a highlighter to "give the illusion of a fuller pout by applying a small dab just above the cupid's bow on your lip."

Now that you know all about this anti-aging essential, it's time to find your best highlighter. But don't worry: We've narrowed down your search by compiling our readers' top picks. From creams to powders, high-end makeup counters to the drugstore, these are the 12 best highlighters that are guaranteed to brighten your face.

TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 8.7*
Why it's great: Beyond giving your face a subtle glow, this highlighter gives "a fabulous facelift," say readers. "This product works extremely well at highlighting and lifting areas on your face and neck," says one user. Another reviewers loves that it comes in "two colors, which are perfect for blending to suit all of your needs." A reader adds, "This product conceals and smoothes minor skin imperfections and helps to achieve a flawless face."

TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 8.8*
Why it's great: To make your dark circles, fine lines and blemishes disappear, readers say you need this highlighting pen. "This sheer formula lightens dark areas around the eyes and lessens deep expression lines around the mouth and forehead," says one user. Another says, "I use this pen on my under-eyes, and it blends in any bits of eye shadow and eyeliner that land in the wrong place.... It works on blemishes, too!" Another says, "This product makes me look refreshed, rejuvenated, and ... makes me appear years younger than I am!"

TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 8.8*
Why it's great: Benefit's creamy highlighter is great for achieving "a natural, gorgeous glow." One reader says the "champagne hue" looks becoming" on her fair skin, and that it "smoothes on effortlessly." She's thrilled that "people don't notice that [I'm] sporting a highlighter--they simply notice a new 'glow' about [me]." Even readers who normally avoid highlights because they are "too pink" or "have too much shimmer" have fallen in love with this subtle highlighter.

TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 8.8*
Why it's great: Readers call this their "go-to" product for a "healthy glow." "It helps to give you that glow you get after being in the sun -- without going into the sun," one reviewer says. "A little on the cheekbones is great," writes another reader. Other readers agree: "I sweep Clear Radiance just beneath my eyebrow and across my cheek bones. It looks like I'm glowing from within."

TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 8.9*
Why it's great: Readers recommend this Stila product because "it's so versatile." One reader not only uses this to highlight her cheeks, she also "mixes it in with body lotion for an all-over glow." Another reviewer is amazed that this product is true to its claims, saying it gives her a "healthy, luminous look." Readers appreciate that the product comes in several different shades, so "there is a perfect one for people of all different skin tones."

TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 8.9*
Why it's great: This "highlighter, bronzer and blush in one" wins readers over because "it adds the right amount of glow and shimmer to the face without being too frosty [or] metallic." Readers like that the four colors can be swirled together to create a customized blush shade or can be used individually "to highlight and bronze."

TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 9.0*
Why it's great: This highlighter is perfect for getting a "bronze-y glow." Readers fall in love with this product, which one says "gives the perfect shimmer when you feel like a glowing, yet natural look." One reader reports that "it gives a really nice glow to tan skin as a highlight. Another agrees, saying, "I really love this stuff, and for dark skin, I think gold is perfect as highlighter!"

TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 9.1*
Why it's great: "I love this highlighter!" says one woman. Readers find that not only does it brighten up their faces, it's also multipurpose. "The Matte Pink Porcelain shade is perfect for dusting under the eyes to help hide dark circles, and the shimmer highlighter is great swirled together for a quick eyeshadow," says one reader. Another reviewer agrees, "This product does more than it claims. I use the shimmery highlighter on top of my cheekbones and in the inner corner of my eyes and under my brows, then I mix it with a little bronzer for a quickie eye shadow."

TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 9.3*
Why it's great: If you're looking for a "healthy, sexy glow," this product may be the one for you. Readers love this "multipurpose" powder, which they use as bronzer, blush and eyeshadow. According to readers, application is "soft and smooth" with a "silky" texture. It "looks really natural" with "blendable" and "buildable" coverage. Overall, readers agree this product is "a great investment in anyone's cosmetics collection."

TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 9.7*
Why it's great: This mineral highlighter comes with four shades in each compact, which readers love because you can put it anywhere. (One reader even uses it as lip color, topped off with lip gloss). It will give you a "sun-kissed look" that one reader says makes her feel like a "starlet." It is an essential product to readers and has become a staple in many of their makeup bags. "If I had only this, concealer and mascara in my makeup bag," one reader says, "I'd be set for any occasion."

TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 9.9*
Why it's great: This "must-try" highlighter is a favorite of readers' because there are multiple colors to suit any mood. Readers like to get creative with the multiple shades that come in each compact, using them for "contouring the cheeks and face, as eyeshadow, or [for] highlighting the lips." This baked highlighter can be applied wet or dry. As one reader puts it, "Not only does it deliver amazing color, it gives you the perfect amount of brilliance."

TotalBeauty.com average member rating: 10*
Why it's great: The highest-rated highlighter among readers is this one, whih gives a "glowing pick-me-up" and "natural yet radiant sheen" to cheekbones. Designed to be used with the Temptu Airbrush Makeup System, this gorgeous highlighter is one "you've got to get" if you can get your hands on the expensive machine. Readers rave about it being "extremely easy to use" and say they will "never go back" to their other highlighters after seeing how this product gives them "dewy, soft and simply gorgeous" skin.

OK call me stupid, but does anyone know how to prperly use these hghlighter's? I've seen some of my co-worker's that use them and some look like their face is almost made of wax or something.. Like it's going to melt.. Just some general tip's and which is the best to use.. I'd love to lighten up my freckle's and do any have an anti-aging factor???